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Council approves $400,000 hotel-occupancy-tax allocation; committee flags larger restoration projects for separate consideration
Summary
The Hotel Occupancy Tax (HOT) Committee recommended awards totaling up to the available $400,000 from $680,400 in requests. Council approved the committee’s recommendations and members urged separate planning for larger projects such as Coconut Field restoration and youth softball venue upgrades.
The Alpine City Council on June 17 approved the Hotel Occupancy Tax Committee’s recommendations for fiscal year 2025–26, allocating up to $400,000 across events and projects recommended to generate overnight visitation.
Director of Tourism Chris Ruggia told council the committee received requests totaling $680,400 and used a weighted scoring rubric — including expected hotel-night impact, capacity to host visitors, professionalism of the application and revenue diversity — to allocate the available fund.
The nut graf: Committee members recommended prioritizing events and promotions most likely to bring overnight visitors; two larger requests — for Coconut Field restoration and for stadium improvements to support youth softball tournaments — were not funded from the annual HOT grant pool but were identified as candidate projects for fund-balance or separate one-time consideration.
Ruggia said the committee funded some historic-preservation work (decorative lighting) but suggested stadium lighting and larger-field renovations be evaluated separately because they represent substantial capital needs and could be better supported through specific fund-balance projects or multi-stakeholder plans with the school district.
Council members praised the committee’s work. Council Member Stevens said the committee “did a phenomenal job” trimming requests and focusing awards on projects that will drive staying visitors; several members volunteered to help convene stakeholders to explore a coordinated plan for Coconut Field and tournament-capable fields.
Ending: Council voted unanimously to approve Resolution 2025-06-23 authorizing the committee’s recommended HOT awards and asked staff and stakeholders to explore fund-balance or one-time funding paths for larger capital projects.
